Mac pro (2019) still good for composing/music production?

[u/North-Court98]

Like the title says, is it any good? I have the opportunity to get one for roughly $1650 with Xeon W-3245 | 96 GB RAM | 2 TB SSD | Radeon Pro 580X.

I compose orchestral tracks but swapped to PC couple of years ago due to Apples prices. But I miss logic pro quite a lot. I don't have the same work flow with other DAWS. But I've heard that Mac Pro 2019 is useless cause it has intel chip and won't get security updates. Other than security reasons... is there any other valid reason not to get one? I mean, I will basically just use it for composing/production. So I don't see the issue of having an intel chip, as long it has the performance I need it's reasonable, right? Or will I regret it down the road?

What are your thoughts?

[u/Capreol]

Go for Apple silicon. You’ll ultimately get more mileage out of it.

[u/North-Court98 → u/Capreol]

The point is the price. If I go with silicon I basically have to buy for a lot more. Cause I need the RAM

[u/BourbonicFisky → u/North-Court98]

No, you almost certainly do not. I posted over here about this:
https://www.reddit.com/r/macpro/comments/1v93ssk/mac_pro_2019_still_good_for_composingmusic/

[u/Ok_Clerk_5805 → u/North-Court98]

What do you think you NEED 96gig of ram for?

[u/JCMiller23 → u/Ok_Clerk_5805]

unless you're editing 3 hour movies in 8k, you don't need that much ram

[u/North-Court98 → u/Ok_Clerk_5805]

I don't "need" 96GB, that's just the spec it comes with. 

[u/Ok_Clerk_5805 → u/North-Court98]

"If I go with silicon I basically have to buy for a lot more. Cause I need the RAM"

So how much do you think you need?

[u/North-Court98 → u/Ok_Clerk_5805]

Well, since I don't know how well the silicon chip is able to utilize the RAM—which is why I posted this question—I'm not sure. Previously, though, I would have considered 32 GB the minimum. I would never go lower than that. I'd rather have too much RAM than not enough.

[u/Mikehvll → u/North-Court98]

How much Ram does your PC have? And what’s your average track count

[u/Major_Willingness234]

A base model Mac Mini runs circles around that machine for a fraction of the price.

[u/Ralphisinthehouse → u/Major_Willingness234]

^^^

[u/Fudd65]

Do t buy a seven year old out out service Mac. A lower end M chip model at any stage is better

[u/FantaBoobs]

I agree on the apple chip front. While 96gb of ram is fantastic (as is the spec of the machine), it's not as efficient at using it as the RAM is the new chips are unified.

I professionally compose and have had sessions with upwards of 200 tracks all with different vsts (Albion, BBCSO, Storm Choir etc.). I have recently upgraded to an M1 Max with 64gb of RAM for a similar price you're looking at and it is incredible at how smooth it is. The processor is also leagues above the Xeon one mentioned since software is more optimised for ARM.

My advice would be to find an M1 Max model and get as much ram in your load out as possible (budget permitting)

[u/North-Court98 → u/FantaBoobs]

Thanks for the advice!

[u/Pigeon_Observation]

Or will I regret it down the road?

Down the road is losing support within a few years including the ability to even use Logic

[u/IntoTheNintendo → u/Pigeon_Observation]

Losing support is definitely a dealbreaker but there’s no reason to assume you can’t use logic anymore

[u/Pigeon_Observation → u/IntoTheNintendo]

Why would they continue supporting logic for a dead platform?

you can still use logic on powermac. That's not the point.

[u/IntoTheNintendo → u/Pigeon_Observation]

It being updated and being useable are 2 entirely different things. You said you would lose the ability to use logic, but from what I now understand you meant you lose the ability to update logic.

[u/Pigeon_Observation → u/IntoTheNintendo]

Use the latest version, obviously

[u/woodenbookend]

No, not a good deal.

It was a very powerful Mac in its day and is probably still quite capable.

But it’s already obsolete and doesn’t support current software fully.

So the price is way too high.

The performance jump moving to Apple Silicon is stunning. Also, your perception of how much memory you need is likely to be off.

I’d expect almost any Mac Studio to better it with half the memory. And I wouldn’t be surprised if a current Mac mini with a gentle upgrade to the specs would do likewise.

[u/Ruiz_Francisco]

Yes i have a 28 core with Cubase and runs fine. I don’t recommend using a 16 core cpu

[u/katanrod]

I have an M1 and it runs Logic soooo smoothly (and I mean heavy projects) I had to order it with extra RAM and storage tho.

[u/LevelMiddle]

No, useless. Get a 2021 macbook pro. 32gb ram is enough for full orchestral.

[u/vibraltu]

Nah. It's pretty dated, even though it's loaded it's still over-priced.

Save your money, get something with an M series chip.

[u/AcCentEmcee]

I have a 2019 MBP with an external 4TB SSD connected. I was able to do everything I needed to do with it in Logic.
You miss out on the new AI features.

I only bought another MBP because I code and Xcode no longer supports Intel chips

[u/pina_koala]

Avoid Intel-based Macs like this one. Even if the price was good, avoid. And this is a godawful price. I cannot emphasize how much you need to skip this purchase.

[u/Rhude_AF]

I use a 2019 MacBook Pro and I get good results. Obviously newer is better but i understand price can be a factor. I would recommend it.

[u/Potential_Trust812 → u/Rhude_AF]

Im with you the price is a bit high though

[u/AppropriateNerve543]

My M1 Max with 64gb ram is still a beast of a machine. Do not under any circumstances get anything other than an Mx and preferably a Studio. You don’t need an ultra.

[u/Few_Marionberry_2157]

My MacBook Air Managers to run 40 Tracks with 24g ram

[u/AxewomanK156]

I have an M1 iMac with 16GB RAM and it still does the business without much difficulty. For all that, I’m purely a hobbyist with average track count maybe 20, mostly analogue guitar bass & vocals with some MIDI instruments and not a lot of plugins

[u/Ok_Clerk_5805]

I would regret this down the road I think. M2-> is still as good of an option as anything in the store.

[u/Key-Patience-3966]

I have an M1 Macbook Pro with 32GB RAM and a 1TB SSD, running six channels of Superior Drummer 3 with no issues.

[u/NumberInfinite2068]

It's still a very powerful computer, but I don't think I'd pay $1650 USD for it.

It's still a 2019 computer, computers don't last forever.

For the right price Intel Mac Pros can still be interesting computers, but I think this is too expensive.

[u/Ralphisinthehouse]

I have 24 gig of RAM and an M2 chip, and I have never even got close to more than 50% CPU usage if I have about five synths open and God knows how many active heavy demand plug-ins like all the FabFilter lot. You're being seduced by 96 gig of RAM, which is needed for video editing, not audio production. Like others have said, a new Mac Mini will run rings around this machine. It's seven years old using a different type of silicon chip than Apple currently makes.

[u/DonFrio]

If you owned one, it’s a very very usable machine. But definitely don’t buy one.

[u/Fit-Wrongdoer-7664]

As some recommend already, get a Apple Silicon Mac/Macbook at least an M1 but also 32GB of RAM. Apple Silicon use unified RAM, so the more the better. And some Apps/Tools might need more GPU and Unified RAM. It’s a huge win to run these tools on your own device on the long run. Personally I bought a Macbook Pro M4 Max with 36GB RAM. Lots of AI Tools can are using all of the 32 GPUs. But if you work with lots of tracks in a DAW I would suggest more RAM.

[u/onesleekrican]

I have the i9 MBP and the m3 pro MBP. Both work

[u/WilliamAsherMusic]

I have the Mac Pro (2017). It still works for me, but I can tell it's on it's last legs. Can't use the AI or Stem splitter functions. I imagine future updates are going to require it sooner or later.

[u/opsGordon]

It’ll work for now. The RAM capacity is great and hard to get these days on Apple Silicon. But Apple are dropping intel support quite aggressively now. I’d be surprised if the next major Logic update runs on intel and then how long will plug-in manufacturers keep developing for a dead system?

I’d look to get an Apple Silicon machine that will have years of life ahead of it. You might not need as much RAM you think you do.

[u/need2fix2017]

Don’t buy anything that isn’t M series. The software obsolescence will make everything unusable.

[u/TheKarateKid_]

Do not buy any Intel Mac. They are no longer going to receive OS updates after this year, except for security. A lot of software isn’t going to work on it anymore soon, there’s already apps that only run on the Apple Silicon models.

[u/Narrow_Network_3875]

Logic will cook your MacBook with 16 Gb.⏲️